‘AEW: Rampage’ Review (May 20th 2022)
It’s Monday morning, so you know what that means… it’s time for our review of Friday night’s episode of AEW: Rampage, which this week emanated from the Fertitta Center in Houston, Texas. We’ve got Excalibur, Taz and Chris Jericho on commentary so let’s get right to the review!
Match #1: Trios Match – Brody King, Buddy Matthews, & Malakai Black def. Fuego Del Sol & Dark Order’s Evil Uno and Ten
The following is courtesy of allelitewrestling.com:
Evil Uno tried to take the attack to Brody King, but Brody King quickly outmuscled Uno and tagged in Malakai Black. Malakai Black fired in some big kicks to Evil Uno, but Evil Uno knocked Black off his feet with a shoulder tackle. Ten tagged in and used a belly-to-belly suplex on Black. Malakai Black used a leg capture into a heel hook on Ten. Ten chopped away at Black and then Fuego Del Sol tagged himself in! Fuego ate an arm drag from Malakai Black. Buddy Matthews tagged in and stomped down on Fuego Del Sol’s arm. Buddy Matthews snapped Fuego Del Sol’s arm, making a hand gesture to mock Penta Oscura and send a message to Death Triangle. The House of Black triple teamed Evil Uno with stereo kicks. Fuego Del Sol tagged in but was knocked off the apron onto the arena floor by Brody King. Outside the ring, Brody King chopped away at Fuego Del Sol. Brody King brought Fuego back into the ring and continued to punish Fuego. Ten tagged in and cleaned house…on the House of Black! Ten ducked a roundhouse from Malakai Black. Dark Order used tandem offense on Malakai Black. Ten tried a double chokeslam on Buddy and Malakai but Malakai escaped and applied a knee bar to Ten! Evil Uno ran in and saved his Dark Order stablemate. Ten rocked Malakai with a discus lariat. Evil Uno and Brody King tagged in for their respective teams. Evil Uno waffled Brody with several running boots, chopping Brody down to size. Matthews nailed Fuego with a DDT on the ramp! Brody finished off Evil Uno with a gonzo bomb for the three count!
My Score: 3 out of 5
Match #2: Shawn Spears def. Big Damo
The following is courtesy of allelitewrestling.com:
Big Damo charged in at Spears but Spears left the ring. Spears kicked Damo in the jaw but Damo shrugged it off. Big Damo hit a running cross body block on Spears on the arena floor! Damo followed up with a cannonball senton on Spears. Damo tried for a Vader Bomb but Spears dodged it. Spears cracked Big Damo with a big knee! Spears delivered the C4 to Big Damo and pinned him, sending a message to Wardlow at the same time!
My Score: 1.5 out of 5
Match #3: Owen Hart Foundation Women’s Tournament Quarter-Final Match – Kris Statlander def. Red Velvet
The following is courtesy of allelitewrestling.com:
Ruby Soho joined the commentary team for this match. Red Velvet slapped Kris in the corner. Statlander powerslammed Red Velvet! Statlander rag dolled Red Velvet. Kris attempted a baseball slide but Red Velvet lifted the ring skirt, capturing Kris in it. Red Velvet tried to jump on Statlander but Statlander grabbed Red Velvet and planted her hard on the ring apron. Kris blasted Red Velvet with a massive German suplex for a near fall! Red Velvet rallied back with the Final Slice on Statlander but Statlander kicked out! Red Velvet fired off elbow strikes to Statlander. Kris planted Red Velvet with the Blue Thunder Bomb! Red Velvet came back with a double knee strike, and then flattened Kris for a (very) near fall. Kris blocked a kick from Red Velvet and then rolled up Red to pin her! Kris Statlander advances!
My Score: 3 out of 5
Match #4: Bryan Danielson & Jon Moxley def. Dante Martin & Matt Sydal
The following is courtesy of allelitewrestling.com:
William Regal joined the commentary team for this match. Jake Hager stood behind Chris Jericho. The Blackpool Combat Club charged Dante and Matt as the match began. Danielson rocked Dante Martin with a European uppercut! Moxley tagged in and connected with a big kick to Dante. Danielson tagged in and stomped on Dante’s leg. Danielson locked on the Romero Special. Bryan clubbed Dante with forearms. Moxley tagged in and started to box Dante Martin. Finally Sydal tagged in and chopped Mox’s legs with kicks. Matt Sydal was using rapid fire pinfall attempts, trying to tax Mox’s cardio conditioning. Moxley snatched Sydal out of thin air and dropped him across the ring ropes. Danielson tagged in and nailed Sydal with a diving knee strike! Dante tagged in a hit a huge cross body press on Danielson. Moxley made the save, breaking up the pin. Dante climbed to the top rope but Danielson shut him down, superplexing Dante. Bryan transitioned into the LeBell Lock. Dante, showing off his heart, clawed his way to the ropes, finally reaching it with his boot. Danielson, frustrated, began dishing crushing round kicks to Dante Martin. Moxley tagged in but Sydal disrupted things. Sydal and Martin used stereo roundhouses on Moxley. Dante surprised Mox with the Nosebleed but Danielson broke up the pin attempt. Dante attempted a poison rana off the middle rope but Mox caught him! Dante pushed off the turnbuckles for a near fall on Mox. Moxley spiked Dante with a piledriver for a two-count! Moxley started torturing Dante with the hammer and anvil elbow strike. Mox pinned Dante after crushing him with the Paradigm Shift!
My Score: 3.5 out of 5
Final Verdict: 3/5
Another solid, if unremarkable episode of Rampage. There was nothing here, maybe apart from how badly Big Damo was treated, that disappointed but nothing that really got me excited either. Hopefully this upcoming week builds to more excitement for Double or Nothing because everything feels a little flat right now, even though we’re only days away from AEW’s next pay per view! Apart from the Owen Hart match everything here felt a little thrown together, maybe it’s time for a little more detailed plotting of AEW’s stories and feuds?
